Movies_Drama

Drama

A Star is Born (1976)
Rated R
Director: Frank Pierson
Theatrical running time: 140 mins.

A fave of Dicksy.

The third remake of the 1932 drama What Price Hollywood?, this
adaptation of A Star Is Born moved the story into the mid-1970's and
changed the milieu from the movie business to pop music. John Norman
Howard (Kris Kristofferson) is a rock star whose career has peaked; he
is numbed by booze and cocaine, his music has lost its edge, and his
performances have become painfully haphazard. One night, after a
concert, he stumbles into a club where he sees a singing group fronted by
Esther Hoffman (Barbra Streisand). John likes what he hears and loves
what he sees; he tries picking her up, but soon realizes if he wants to see
her, he'll have to ask her out on an actual date. He does, and before long
the two become involved, although Esther has trouble with John's rock
star lifestyle. One night, a typically burned-out John lets Esther sing a few
songs at one of his shows; before long she's the talk of the record
business. While Esther's star begins to rise, John's continues to sink, and
while she desperately tries get John to clean up and focus on his music, it
may be too late to save him. The song "Evergreen" earned this film an
Academy Award for Best Song; the credits contain the amusing notice,
"Ms. Streisand's Clothes from ... Her Closet." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie
Guide

Chariots of Fire (1981)
Review is under Sports and Fitness.

Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Director: Stuart Rosenberg
Theatrical running time: 126 mins

Among the rest of Paul Newman's wonderful movies, one of Jan's faves.

Paul Newman was nominated for an Oscar and George Kennedy
received one for his work in this allegorical prison drama. Luke Jackson
(Paul Newman) is sentenced to a stretch on a southern chain gang after
he's arrested for drunkenly decapitating parking meters. While the
avowed ambition of the captain (Strother Martin) is for each prisoner to
"get their mind right," it soon becomes obvious that Luke is not about to
kowtow to anybody. When challenged to a fistfight by fellow inmate
Dragline (George Kennedy), Luke simply refuses to give up, even
though he's brutally beaten. Luke knows how to win at poker, even with
bad cards, by using his smarts and playing it cool. Luke also figures out a
way for the men to get their work done in half the usual time, giving them
the afternoon off. Finally, when Luke finds out his mother has died, he
plots his escape; when he's caught, he simply escapes again. Soon, Luke
becomes a symbol of hope and resilience to the other men in the prison
camp -- and a symbol of rebelliousness that must be stamped out to the
guards and the captain. Along with stellar performances by Newman,
Kennedy, and Martin, Cool Hand Luke features a superb supporting cast,
including Ralph Waite, Harry Dean Stanton, Dennis Hopper, Wayne
Rogers, and Joe Don Baker as members of the chain gang. ~ Mark
Deming, All Movie Guide.

Fiddler on the Roof (1971)
Director: Jerome Robbins and Norman Jewison
Theatrical running time: 179 mins

A fave of Janean

Norman Jewison's adaptation of the long-running Broadway musical is set
in the Ukranian ghetto village of Anatevka (the film was actually lensed in
Yugoslavia). Israeli actor Topol repeats his London stage role as Tevye
the milkman, whose equilibrium is constantly being challenged by his
poverty, the prejudicial attitudes of non-Jews, and the romantic
entanglements of his five daughters. Whenever the weight of the world
becomes too much for him, Tevye carries on lengthy conversations with
God, who does not answer but is at least more willing to listen than the
milkman's remonstrative wife Golde (Norma Crane). After arranging a
marriage between his oldest daughter Tzeitel (Rosalind Harris) and
wealthy butcher Lazar Wolf (Paul Mann), Tevye is forced to do some
quick rearranging when the girl falls in love with poor tailor Motel Kamzoil
(Leonard Frey). Fancying himself more broad-minded than his gentile
oppressors, Tevye cannot accept the notion that his other daughter
Chava (Neva Small) would want to marry Fyedka (Raymond Lovelock),
a non-Jew. And after shouting the praises of "tradition," Tevye must
change his tune---and his entire life---when he and his neighbors are
forced out of Anatevka by the Czar's minions. Topol's co-stars include
Norma Crane as Golde, Yiddish theater legend Molly Picon as Yente
the matchmaker, and Leonard Frey as Motel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie
Guide

Field of Dreams (1989)
Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Theatrical running time: 106 mins.

A fave of Dicksy.

"If you build it, he will come." That's the ethereal message that inspires
Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) to construct a baseball
diamond in the middle of his cornfield. At first, "he" seems to be the ghost
of disgraced ballplayer Shoeless Joe Jackson (Ray Liotta), who
materializes on the ballfield and plays a few games with the awestruck
Ray. But as the weeks go by, Ray receives several other messages from
a disembodied voice, one of which is "Ease his pain." He realizes that his
ballfield has been divinely ordained to give a second chance to people
who have sacrificed certain valuable aspects of their lives. One of these
folks is Salingeresque writer Terence Mann (James Earl Jones), whom
Ray kidnaps and takes to a ball game and then to his farm. Another is
Doc Graham (Burt Lancaster), a beloved general practitioner who gave
up a burgeoning baseball career in favor of medicine. The final
"second-chancer" turns out to be much closer to Ray. That "magical" field
in Dyersville, Iowa, still draws thousands of baseball-happy tourists each
year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Footloose (1984)
Theatrical running time: 107 mins.

George didn't exactly recommend this movie, but wrote saying that it was
reminscent of what happened with our senior prom. It's classified as both
musical and drama; see Musicals for George's comments and review.

Giant (1956)
Director: George Stevens
Theatrical running time: 201 mins.

Rob says, "The script still holds up after all these years."

George Stevens' sprawling adaptation of Edna Ferber's best-selling novel
successfully walks a fine line between potboiler and serious drama for its
210-minute running time, making it one of the few epics of its era that
continues to hold up as engrossing entertainment across the decades.
Giant opens circa 1922 in Maryland, where Texas rancher Jordan "Bick"
Benedict (Rock Hudson) has arrived to buy a stallion called War Winds
from its owner, Dr. Horace Lynnton (Paul Fix). But much as Bick loves and
knows horses, he finds himself even more transfixed by the doctor's
daughter, Leslie Lynnton (Elizabeth Taylor), and after some awkward
moments, she has to admit that she's equally drawn to the shy, laconic
Texan. They get married and Leslie spends her honeymoon traveling with
Jordan to his ranch, Reata, which covers nearly a million acres of Texas.
Once there, however, she finds that she has to push her way into her
rightful role as mistress of the house, past Bick's sister, Luz (Mercedes
McCambridge), who can't accept her brother's marriage or the changes it
means in the home they share. Also working around Reata is the laconic
ranch hand Jett Rink (James Dean) -- from a family as rooted in Texas as
the Benedicts but not nearly as lucky (or "foxy"), Jett is dirt-poor and
barely educated at all, and he fairly oozes resentment at Bick for his
arrogance, although Luz likes him and for that reason alone Bick is
obliged to keep him on. One thing Jett does have in common with his
employer is that he is in awe of Leslie's beauty; another is his nearly total
contempt for the Mexican-Americans who work for them -- Jett and Bick
may have contempt for each other, but either one is just as likely to
dismiss the Mexican-Americans around them as a bunch of shiftless
"wetbacks." Luz feels so threatened with a loss of power and control that
she decides to assert herself with War Winds, yet another "prize" that Bick
brought back from Maryland that resists her authority -- then decides to
ride the stallion despite being warned that no one but Leslie is wholly safe
on him, and spurs him brutally in an effort to break him, which ends up
destroying them both in the battle of wills she starts.

After Luz's death, Jett learns that she left him a tiny piece of land for his
own, on Reata, which he refuses to sell back to Bick, preferring to keep it
for his own and maybe prospect for oil on it. Meanwhile, Leslie and Bick
have their own problems -- Leslie can't abide the wretched conditions in
which the Mexican families who work on Reata are allowed to live, taking a
special interest in Mr. and Mrs. Obregon and their baby, Angel; but Bick
doesn't want his wife, or any member of his family, concerning themselves
with "those people." Leslie's humanity and her independence push their
marriage to the limit, but Bick comes to accept this in his wife, and in four
years of marriage they have three handsome children, a boy and two
girls, and a loving if occasionally awkward home life. Meanwhile, Jett
strikes oil on his land -- which he's named Little Reata -- and in a couple
of years he's on his way to becoming the richest man in Texas, getting
drilling contracts on all of the land in the area (except Reata) and making
more money than the Benedicts ever saw from raising cattle. Bick is
almost oblivious to the way Jett grows in power and influence across the
years and the state, mostly because he's got his own family to worry
about, including a son, Jordan III (Dennis Hopper), who doesn't want to
take over the ranch from him, but wants instead to be a doctor; an older
daughter, Judy (Fran Bennett), who wants to study animal husbandry and
marry a local rancher (Earl Holliman) and start a tiny spread of her own;
and a younger daughter, Luz (Carroll Baker), who's just a bit man-crazy
and star-struck by the movies.

The American entry into the Second World War and the resulting need for
oil forces Bick to go into business with Jett and allow him to drill on Reata,
and suddenly the Benedicts are wealthy enough to be part of Jett Rink's
circle, which includes the governor of the state and at least one United
States senator at his beck and call -- and Luz develops a serious crush
on Jett, who likes his women young and is especially attracted to her, as
Bick's and Leslie's daughter. Young Jordan marries Juana, a
Mexican-American nursing student (Elsa Cardenas), and his father
accepts it begrudgingly, with help from Leslie. The war kills Angel
Obregon (Sal Mineo), a death that even affects Bick, but the Benedict
family gets through it wealthier than ever and grows some more with the
birth of Jordan IV to Jordie and Juana. When the family attends a gala
opening of Jett Rink Airport, which concludes with a dinner honoring Jett's
success, however, young Jordan's wife is humiliated by Jett's racist edicts,
and he is beaten up by Jett's men after punching the oil baron. Seeing
this, Bick challenges his old rival to the fight that's been brewing for a
quarter of a century and wins by default, Jett being too drunk to defend
himself or to hit; he's also too drunk to make the grand speech that was to
climax the celebration, and he ends up alone in the ballroom. The
Benedicts have it out with each other, young Jordan accusing his father of
being as much a racist as Jett, and Leslie caught in the middle between
her husband and her son. It looks like the Benedicts may lose each other,
until an encounter with a racist diner owner forces Bick to stand up and
get knocked down (more than once) defending his daughter-in-law and
his grandson.

Seen today, Giant seems the least dated of any of James Dean's three
starring films, in part because it addresses issues that remain relevant
more than 50 years later, and also because it has the best all-around
acting and the best script of any of the three. Taken in broader terms, it's
even better, with two of the best performances that Elizabeth Taylor and
Rock Hudson ever gave, and perhaps the second best of Hudson's whole
career (after Seconds) -- the only unfortunate element at modern
theatrical screenings is the tendency of younger viewers, who only know
him in terms of the revelations late in his life of his being gay, to laugh and
snicker at elements of Hudson's characterization; but his work is so good
that the titters usually fade after the first 30 minutes or so. ~ Bruce Eder,
All Movie Guide

The Godfather Trilogy (1972, 1974, 1990)
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Rated R; Theatrical running time 175 mins.

Judy ER says, "Surely The Godfathers, I,2, and 3 are as close to
Macbeth or the other great tragedies as we in this era will ever get. Is
there ever a night when one of them isn't on TV?"

Popularly viewed as one of the best American films ever made, the
multi-generational crime saga The Godfather is a touchstone of cinema:
one of the most widely imitated, quoted, and lampooned movies of all
time. Marlon Brando and Al Pacino star as Vito Corleone and his
youngest son, Michael, respectively. It is the late 1940s in New York and
Corleone is, in the parlance of organized crime, a "godfather" or "don,"
the head of a Mafia family. Michael, a free thinker who defied his father by
enlisting in the Marines to fight in World War II, has returned a captain
and a war hero. Having long ago rejected the family business, Michael
shows up at the wedding of his sister, Connie (Talia Shire), with his
non-Italian girlfriend, Kay (Diane Keaton), who learns for the first time
about the family "business." A few months later at Christmas time, the don
barely survives being shot by gunmen in the employ of a drug-trafficking
rival whose request for aid from the Corleones' political connections was
rejected. After saving his father from a second assassination attempt,
Michael persuades his hotheaded eldest brother, Sonny (James Caan),
and family advisors Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall) and Sal Tessio (Abe
Vigoda) that he should be the one to exact revenge on the men
responsible. After murdering a corrupt police captain and the drug
trafficker, Michael hides out in Sicily while a gang war erupts at home.
Falling in love with a local girl, Michael marries her, but she is later slain
by Corleone enemies in an attempt on Michael's life. Sonny is also
butchered, having been betrayed by Connie's husband. As Michael
returns home and convinces Kay to marry him, his father recovers and
makes peace with his rivals, realizing that another powerful don was
pulling the strings behind the narcotics endeavor that began the gang
warfare. Once Michael has been groomed as the new don, he leads the
family to a new era of prosperity, then launches a campaign of murderous
revenge against those who once tried to wipe out the Corleones,
consolidating his family's power and completing his own moral downfall.
Nominated for 11 Academy Awards and winning for Best Picture, Best
Actor (Marlon Brando), and Best Adapted Screenplay, The Godfather was
followed by a pair of sequels. Karl Williams, All Movie Guide,

Invincible (2006)
Director: Eric Core
104 mins.

From the producers of The Rookie and Remember the Titans comes an
inspirational sports drama detailing the true story of a down-on-his-luck
football fan whose dreams of standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the best
of the gridiron became a once-in-a-lifetime reality when he took part in an
open tryout organized by Philadelphia Eagles coach Dick Vermeil. Vince
Papale (Mark Wahlberg) was a 30-year-old substitute teacher and
part-time bartender who had never even played college football. When
Coach Vermeil (Greg Kinnear) made the unprecedented announcement
that he would be holding open tryouts for the Philadelphia Eagles, Papale
would go against incredible odds to live the dream and experience every
fan's biggest fantasy. With a position on the Eagles secured and a new
life path forged out of little more than determination and persistence,
Papale takes to the field to experience the life-altering rush of running
yards as a stadium full of cheering fans burst from their seats to support
the hometown hero who proved it's never too late to take control of your
own destiny. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The Karate Kid (1984)
Director: John G. Avildsen
Theatrical running time: 127 mins.

Jan says, "I absolutely loved this movie."

Newly arrived in California from New Jersey, teenager Daniel (Ralph
Macchio) almost immediately runs afoul of karate-trained high school
bullies. He is rescued by Japanese janitor Miyagi (Noriyuki "Pat"
Morita), who agrees to teach Daniel how to harness karate for good
instead of brutality. The film culminates in a championship karate bout,
pitting Daniel against his sworn enemy Johnny (William Zabka) - the cruel
and thuggish boyfriend of Ali (Elisabeth Shue) with whom Daniel has
fallen in love (and vice-versa). Real-life karate champ Chuck Norris was
offered the role of Kreese, the sadistic coach who goads Johnny into
fighting dirty, but Norris turned down the role, refusing to be shown
utilizing his skills negatively on screen. Vastly popular, The Karate Kid
spawned three sequels of rapidly descending merit, as well as a Saturday
morning cartoon series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
Director: Frank Capra
Theatrical running time: 129 mins.

Ann says, "I feel passionately that every elected official (specially the
feds) should have to view this movie before taking office. Russert was
interviewing some senator a couple of years ago and the guy had no clue
about this movie. Am I living in a dream world?"

"Frank Capra's classic comedy-drama established James Stewart as a
lead actor in one of his finest (and most archetypal) roles. The film opens
as a succession of reporters shout into telephones announcing the death
of Senator Samuel Foley. Senator Joseph Paine (Claude Rains), the
state's senior senator, puts in a call to Governor Hubert "Happy" Hopper
(Guy Kibbee) reporting the news. Hopper then calls powerful media
magnate Jim Taylor (Edward Arnold), who controls the state -- along with
the lawmakers. Taylor orders Hopper to appoint an interim senator to fill
out Foley's term; Taylor has proposed a pork barrel bill to finance an
unneeded dam at Willet Creek, so he warns Hopper he wants a senator
who "can't ask any questions or talk out of turn." After having a number of
his appointees rejected, at the suggestion of his children Hopper
nominates local hero Jefferson Smith (James Stewart), leader of the
state's Boy Rangers group. Smith is an innocent, wide-eyed idealist who
quotes Jefferson and Lincoln and idolizes Paine, who had known his
crusading editor father. In Washington, after a humiliating introduction to
the press corps, Smith threatens to resign, but Paine encourages him to
stay and work on a bill for a national boy's camp. With the help of his
cynical secretary Clarissa Sanders (Jean Arthur), Smith prepares to
introduce his boy's camp bill to the Senate. But when he proposes to build
the camp on the Willets Creek site, Taylor and Paine force him to drop the
measure. Smith discovers Taylor and Paine want the Willets Creek site for
graft and he attempts to expose them, but Paine deflects Smith's charges
by accusing Smith of stealing money from the boy rangers. Defeated,
Smith is ready to depart Washington, but Saunders, whose patriotic zeal
has been renewed by Smith, exhorts him to stay and fight. Smith returns
to the Senate chamber and, while Taylor musters the media forces in his
state to destroy him, Smith engages in a climactic filibuster to speak his
piece: "I've got a few things I want to say to this body. I tried to say them
once before and I got stopped colder than a mackerel. Well, I'd like to get
them said this time, sir. And as a matter of fact, I'm not gonna leave this
body until I do get them said." ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide.

Network (1976)
Director: Sidney Lumet
Rated R. Theatrical Running Time 121 mins.

Rob says, "This movie has disturbing parallels to our current situation."

The story opens with long-time "UBS Evening News" anchor Howard Beale
(Peter Finch) being fired because of the show's low ratings. The
following night, Beale announces on the air that he will commit suicide
during an upcoming live broadcast. UBS immediately fires him after this
incident, but they let him back on the air, ostensibly for a dignified
farewell, with persuasion from Beale's producer and best friend, Max
Schumacher (William Holden), the network's old guard news editor.
Beale promises that he will apologize for his outburst, but instead rants
about how life is "bullshit." While there are serious repercussions, the
program's ratings skyrocket and, much to Schumacher's dismay, the
upper echelons of UBS decide to exploit Beale's antics rather than pulling
him off the air. In one impassioned diatribe, Beale galvanizes the nation
with his rant, "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this
anymore!" and persuades Americans to shout out their windows during a
spectacular lightning storm. Soon Beale is hosting a new program called
The Howard Beale Show, top-billed as a "mad prophet of the airways."
Ultimately, the show becomes the highest rated (Robert Duvall's
character calls it "a big fat, ... big-titted hit!") program on television, and
Beale finds new celebrity preaching his angry message in front of a live
audience that, on cue, repeats the Beale's marketed catchphrase en
masse. His new set is lit by blue spotlights and an enormous stained-glass
window, supplemented with segments featuring astrology, gossip, opinion
polls, and yellow journalism. Parallel to the story of Beale is the tale of the
rise within UBS of Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway). Beginning as a
producer of entertainment programming, Diana acquires footage of
terrorists robbing banks for a new television series, charms other
executives, and ends up controlling a merged news and entertainment
division. To advance this, Christensen has an affair with the long-married
Schumacher, but remains obsessed with the success of the network, even
in bed. Upon discovering that the conglomerate that owns UBS will be
bought out by an even larger Saudi Arabian conglomerate, Beale
launches an on-screen tirade against the two corporations, encouraging
the audience to telegram the White House with the message, "I'm mad as
hell and I'm not going to take this any more" in the hopes of stopping the
merger. Beale is then taken to meet with Arthur Jensen (Ned Beatty),
chairman of the company which owns UBS, who explicates his own
"corporate cosmology" to the now nearly delusional Beale. Jensen
delivers a lecture - almost a sermon - beginning by declaring to Beale,
"You have meddled in the primal forces of nature" before describing the
interrelatedness of the participants in the international economy, and the
illusory nature of nationality distinctions. Jensen ultimately persuades
Beale to abandon his populist messages. However, audiences find his
new views on the dehumanization of society to be depressing, and ratings
begin to slide. (Jan's note: We won't spoil the ending. See the movie!
Review is from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_(film))

Old Yeller (1957)
Director: Robert Stevenson
Theatrical running time: 84 mins.

One of Dewey's favorites.

Based on the novel by Fred Gipson, Old Yeller is set in Texas in 1869.
While his father is away on a cattle drive, 15-year-old Travis Coates
(Tommy Kirk) takes over management of the family farm. Adopting a
"strictly business" policy, Travis is irritated when younger brother, Arliss
(Kevin Corcoran), adopts a frisky stray dog. But soon Travis is as fond
of the dog as everyone else in the family; moreover, "Old Yeller" is an
excellent watchdog. But while fighting off a mad wolf, Yeller is infected with
rabies. Though Yeller seems unaffected at first, he eventually behaves so
viciously that the disheartened Travis has no choice but to shoot the dog.
A heart-to-heart talk between Travis and his returning father (Fess
Parker), coupled with the adoption of a new pup, paves the way to an
emotional but reasonably happy ending. Earning eight million dollars
domestically on its first release, Old Yeller convinced Walt Disney to
devote more and more time to live-action films and less time to animation
-- which at the time was a sagacious business move. In 1963, Disney
released a lesser sequel to Old Yeller titled Savage Sam. ~ Hal Erickson,
All Movie Guide

The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
Director: Joel Schumacher
Theatrical running time: 144 mins.

Jan says, "Haunting! Hard to hear sometimes because the orchestra is
too loud."

One of the most popular stage musicals in the history of Broadway and
London's West End makes its long-awaited arrival on the motion-picture
screen in this lavish adaptation directed by Joel Schumacher. Christine
(Emmy Rossum) is a beautiful and gifted young woman who longs to join
the company of the Paris Opera House. During rehearsals for one of the
opera's grand productions, a backdrop falls and crashes to the floor,
nearly crushing leading lady Carlotta (Minnie Driver). When several
members of the company suggest this could be the work of the "Phantom
of the Opera," a spectral presence said to haunt the building, Carlotta
drops out of the show, and the fates permit Christine to step in as her
replacement. Christine's performance is a triumph, and on opening night
she becomes reacquainted with Raoul (Patrick Wilson), a former
childhood friend who is now a wealthy and well-known nobleman. Christine
soon finds herself smitten with the handsome Raoul, but the same
evening she makes a startling discovery -- the story of the Phantom is not
just a legend. A brilliant but horribly disfigured composer (Gerard Butler)
lives deep in the depths of the opera house, and taken with the beauty of
Christine's voice, he abducts her and brings her to his lair, where he
offers to help her perfect her talents, offering to write an opera especially
for her. As the terrified Christine is comforted by Raoul, the two fall in
love, but the phantom sees her affection for Raoul as a tremendous
betrayal, and the jealous phantom nearly kills Christine as he nearly killed
Carlotta. When the phantom emerges to present the opera's management
with the piece he has written for Christine, the singer is asked to put her
life on the line in an effort to capture the mad genius once and for all.
Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical version of Gaston Leroux's novel, which
had already enjoyed several stage and screen adaptations in the past,
opened in London in 1986 and has been a popular favorite around the
world ever since; the show was still running in New York and London when
the film version premiered in late 2004. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Rain Man (1988)
Director: Sidney Lumet
Rated R. Theatrical running time: 134 mins.

A fave of Dicksy.

Self-centered, avaricious Californian Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) is
informed that his long-estranged father has died. Expecting at least a
portion of the elder Babbitt's $3 million estate, Charlie learns that all he's
inherited is his dad's prize roses and a 1949 Buick Roadmaster.
Discovering that the $3 million is being held in trust for an unidentified
party, Charlie heads to his home town of Cincinnati to ascertain who that
party is. It turns out that the beneficiary is Raymond Babbitt (Dustin
Hoffman), the autistic-savant older brother that Charlie never knew he
had. Able to memorize reams of trivia and add, subtract, multiply, and
divide without a second's hesitation, Raymond is otherwise incapable of
functioning as a normal human being. Aghast that Raymond is to receive
his father's entire legacy, Charlie tries to cut a deal with Raymond's
guardian. When this fails, Charlie "borrows" Raymond from the institution
where he lives, hoping to use his brother as leverage to claim half the
fortune. During their subsequent cross-country odyssey, Charlie is forced
to accommodate Raymond's various autistic idiosyncracies, not the least
of which is his insistence on adhering to a rigid daily schedule: he must,
for example, watch People's Court and Jeopardy every day at the same
time, no matter what. On hitting Las Vegas, Charlie hopes to harness
Raymond's finely-honed mathematical skills to win big at the gaming
tables; but this exploitation of his brother's affliction compels Charlie to
reassess his own values, or lack thereof. A longtime pet project of star
Dustin Hoffman, Rain Man was turned down by several high-profile
directors before Barry Levinson took on the challenge of bringing Ronald
Bass' screenplay to fruition (Levinson also appears in the film as a
psychiatrist). All three men won Oscars, and the movie won Best Picture.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Spencer's Mountain (1963)
Director/Writer/Producer: Delmer Daves
Theatrical running time: 118 mins.

A fave of Mary Ann.

For a family picture, not to mention a story that later became the
old-fashioned-values-affirming series The Waltons, Spencer's
Mountain sure has a lot in it about sex. Henry Fonda gives an interesting
portrayal in one of his more unusual roles, as Clay Spencer, the
hard-drinkin', hard-livin', hard lovin', hard-cussin' patriarch of a fiercely
independent Wyoming family living in the Grand Tetons. When he's not
resisting the encroachment of organized religion on his daily life (he
believes in God, but doesn't want others to tell him how to do that, or how
to show respect to the Lord), he's busy trying to finish the house he
promised his wife (Maureen O'Hara) to house their constantly growing
brood, and trying to help his eldest son, Clayboy (James MacArthur) --
who's going to be the first Spencer to get past high school -- prepare for
college and manhood, while temptation in the form of Claris Coleman
(Mimsy Farmer) and Minnie-Cora Cook (Kathy Bennett) comes his way.
There's also a good bit of human drama here, and some especially finely
nuanced performances by Donald Crisp and Lillian Bronson as
Fonda's aging parents. Between their work, the CinemaScope
photography, the gorgeous Wyoming locations, and a good basic story,
this is a surprisingly engrossing comedy-drama of a kind that probably
could not be made today, even with a top-name cast. ~ Bruce Eder, All
Movie Guide

Thelma and Louise (1991)
Director: Ridley Scott
Rated R. Theatrical running time: 129 mins.

Ann L says, "My feel-good movie."

Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon play Thelma and Louise, two
working-class friends who together have planned a weekend getaway
from the men in their lives. Thelma's husband, Darryl (Chris McDonald),
is an overbearing oaf, and Louise's boyfriend, Jimmy (Michael Madsen),
simply will not commit. Though the road trip starts out as a good time, the
pair eventually wind up at a bar. A tipsy Thelma ends up in the parking lot
of the bar with a would-be rapist. Louise shoots the man dead. The two
decide that they have no choice but to go on the run. They eventually
meet up with a young criminal named J.D. (Brad Pitt), whose cowboy
spirit rubs off on the timid Thelma. The pair is pursued by a police officer
(Harvey Keitel) sympathetic toward their plight. He chases them to the
Grand Canyon, where the women make a fateful decision about their
lives. Directed by Ridley Scott, Thelma & Louise brought first-time
screenwriter Callie Khouri many accolades including the Oscar for Best
Original Screenplay. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Theater viewing time: 130 mins.
Director: Robert Mulligan

Judy ER says, "Please add a movie I've seen at least 5 times to your list.
I have read To Kill a Mockingbird over and over and never get tired of it.
Surely Harper Lee knew me (Scout) and my brother Jim (Jem).

Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning autobiographical novel was translated
to film in 1962 by Horton Foote and the producer/director team of Robert
Mulligan and Alan J. Pakula. Set a small Alabama town in the 1930s, the
story focuses on scrupulously honest, highly respected lawyer Atticus
Finch, magnificently embodied by Gregory Peck. Finch puts his career
on the line when he agrees to represent Tom Robinson (Brock Peters),
a black man accused of rape. The trial and the events surrounding it are
seen through the eyes of Finch's six-year-old daughter Scout (Mary
Badham). While Robinson's trial gives the film its momentum, there are
plenty of anecdotal occurrences before and after the court date: Scout's
ever-strengthening bond with older brother Jem (Philip Alford), her
friendship with precocious young Dill Harris (a character based on Lee's
childhood chum Truman Capote and played by John Megna), her
father's no-nonsense reactions to such life-and-death crises as a
rampaging mad dog, and especially Scout's reactions to, and relationship
with, Boo Radley (Robert Duvall in his movie debut), the reclusive
"village idiot" who turns out to be her salvation when she is attacked by a
venomous bigot. To Kill a Mockingbird won Academy Awards for Best
Actor (Peck), Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Art Direction. ~ Hal
Erickson, All Movie Guide

Wall Street (1987)
Director: Oliver Stone
Rated R
Theatrical running time: 126 mins.

"Greed is Good." This is the credo of the aptly named Gordon Gekko
(Michael Douglas), the antihero of Oliver Stone's Wall Street. Gekko, a
high-rolling corporate raider, is idolized by young-and-hungry broker Bud
Fox (Charlie Sheen). Inveigling himself into Gekko's inner circle, Fox
quickly learns to rape, murder and bury his sense of ethics. Only when
Gekko's wheeling and dealing causes a near-tragedy on a personal level
does Fox "reform"--though his means of destroying Gekko are every bit
as underhanded as his previous activities on the trading floor. Director
Stone, who co-wrote Wall Street with Stanley Weiser, has claimed that the
film was prompted by the callous treatment afforded his stockbroker father
after 50 years in the business; this may be why the film's most compelling
scenes are those between Bud Fox and his airline mechanic father
(played by Charlie Sheen's real-life dad Martin). Ironically, Wall Street
was released just before the October, 1987 stock market crash. ~ Hal
Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Wind and the Lion (1975)
Director: John Milius
Theatrical running time: 119 mins.

Ann L. says, "it is quite interesting how this movie made in the 70's
mimics what's going on today...very entertaining..."

In the early 1900s, an American businessman was kidnapped by a
rebellious Arab chieftain, principally as a means to embarrass the sultan
of Morocco. This abduction sparked the threat of armed intervention by
President Theodore Roosevelt, which was never carried out. In The Wind
and the Lion, the unattractive male captive is replaced by the gorgeous
female Mrs. Pedecaris, an American widow played by Candice Bergen.
The ruthless but essentially decent Arab chief Raisuli is portrayed by
Sean Connery, while Teddy Roosevelt is depicted as a jingoistic
blowhard by Brian Keith. The film's main theme -- that of America's
emergence as a world power -- is largely secondary to the growing
mutual-respect relationship between Mrs. Pedecaris and Raisuli. After
releasing his hostage, Raisuli is himself captured by German forces, who
at the behest of the Kaiser are seeking out methods of laying the
groundwork for what would evolve into World War I. Mrs. Pedecaris must
then help Raisuli escape. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide